We extend our commitment to innovation beyond the nursery and into the field using real-time data, AI scouting, and precision water management to support long-term vineyard success. Here’s how we’re integrating technology into our field operations: AI-Powered Scouting Tellia Tellia is a voice-driven observation platform that captures and organizes field data instantly. Observations are securely stored and fully searchable. Need to know where a specific weed or issue was identified? Simply ask, and Tellia retrieves every relevant entry complete with location, timestamp, and notes. It transforms scouting from note-taking into actionable intelligence. Precision Irrigation Hortau Using soil tension probes and automated irrigation programming, the Hortau system allows us to irrigate based on real-time soil moisture data. This ensures optimal crop health while significantly improving water-use efficiency. Aerial Technology Drones and Imaging These tools allow us to detect var

Two years ago, I wrote an article on AI in the vineyard for WBM. Feel free to read that article here…if you want. Otherwise, my basic argument was that although AI will eventually play a role in how we farm grapes, it’s a long way off compared to other industries and even other crops. We who grow grapes are the last ones to see such innovation. And since then, AI has grown exponentially. If two years ago you were playing around with Chat GPT to create bizarrely distorted images and learn about tax loopholes, you can now go onto the likes of Claude and have it just create a website for you from a single prompt. Chatbots like this have essentially eliminated the need for entry-level coders. However Claude is a computer, so it makes sense that it’s gotten very good at writing code for other computers. Similarly Chat GPT has digested the entire internet, and curates any answer for you by plucking it from its vast network of information. Sometimes its correct, and other t

A look back at our presence at the Cuma day on Thursday July 3, at Château Bonnet, organized by the network of local CUMA Federations of Gironde & Lot-et-Garonne , by the CUMA Federation of Nouvelle-Aquitaine and by the Gironde Chamber of Agriculture .  Around ten companies were present for demonstrations and practical exercises of their innovations. Exhibitors and demonstrations  all day long A day on the theme of Robotics and Wine Innovation with different themes covered such as:  Robots Guidance and autoguidance systems Drones Disease detection Connected boxes Intra-plot modulation Decision support tool It was punctuated by demonstrations in the plots, discussions between professionals on the stands and a round table on climate issues. This event allowed us to introduce Process2Wine to some winegrowers who hadn't yet had the opportunity to meet us. We came to them. We were able to demonstrate once again that our software is the leader in the wine mark

In the Wine Industry, precision is key. Whether it's for developing new vineyard sites, expanding existing operations, or managing irrigation systems, having accurate land data is critical. This is where modern surveying technology comes into play.  Ray Carlson & Associates has been at the forefront of using these cutting-edge technologies to provide accurate and efficient land surveys for the North Bay wine industry, including vineyards in Sonoma, Napa, and beyond. The Role of Drones in Surveying Drones - or unmanned aerial vehicles (UaVs) - have taken land surveying to new heights. With high-definitiion cameras and GPS-enabled flight paths, drones capture precise aerial images that can be stitched together to create detailed topographic maps and 3D models. These models help vineyard owners visualize their land in ways that were once impossible with traditional surveys.  Using drones to map vineyard properties offers several advantages:   Efficient Coverage

Farmers and agricultural experts indicate that better access to ongoing education is crucial to advance their businesses. Recognizing that advancements in science and technology are constant, Vineyard Team launched a series of online courses to deliver the latest education on sustainable winegrowing.  Courses feature insights from experienced farmers, researchers, and UC Extension. Best of all, viewers can access these courses for free (saving $380)! All courses within Sustainable Winegrowing On Demand include valuable continuing education hours (11.5 Department of Pesticide Regulation, 34 Certified Crop Advisor), and a train-the-trainer kit so viewers can easily educate their team. Through this program, there is a unique opportunity to connect with other sustainable winegrowers through roundtable discussions. Larry Witted, PCA and CCA from Lodi, California shares, "The Sustainable Winegrowing education from Vineyard Team allows me to view cutting-edge educational pro

After veraison, as grapes develop their enticing color in the vineyard, the age-old battle between man and nature — in the form of hungry birds — begins. Vintners and farmers have experimented with gas cannons, reflective flash tape, sonic sound systems, drones and netting to scare off their voracious flying opponents. But, the noise of cannons and sonics can irritate neighbors, and drones and netting are labor intensive, making them too expensive to maintain. Nature often provides the best solution, and in the case of birds raiding vineyards, the natural solution is birds of prey like falcons. Small birds' instinctive fear of their natural predators causes the flock to shift direction, saving the crop from invasion. After five decades in the bird abatement business, Falcon Crop Protection has an intimate knowledge of bird behavior and has brought this knowledge to wine country after their marketing manager moved to Healdsburg, launching Falcon Crop Protection to help

Vineyard Team's introduction of Sustainable Winegrowing On-Demand in 2023 brought forth a game-changing initiative. This program includes no-cost online courses that explore essential subjects like soil health, pest management, nutrition, and climate change, benefiting winegrape growers and industry professionals alike. Get instant access to 20 courses - absolutely free! -These courses prioritize sustainable winegrowing methods and all count towards valuable Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) or Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) continuing education hours: Trunk Renewal for Management of Trunk Diseases | DPR 1 - O; CCA 1 - IPM Waves of Innovation in Virus Vector Disruption: Vine Mealybug | DPR 1 - O; CCA 1 - IPM Improving Nursery Practices to Prevent Fungal Contamination and Biocontrol Strategies Against Grapevine Trunk Diseases | DPR 1 - O; CCA 1 - IPM Beyond Climate Change: The Agricultural Response and the Concept of Climate Smart Agriculture | CCA 1 - SWM Biologicals Upda

We are always in awe of the cool technologies our industry comes up with every year. We hear the buzz at trade shows like the DTCWS and read futuristic-sounding articles that round up what wineries around the world are doing. There are some neat things just on the horizon, and these things will particularly affect the kinds of wineries that come to us for help with their DTC shipping and fulfillment. Here, then, are some of the top trends and technologies we are seeing, and that we feel are poised to become common practice throughout the wine industry. Augmented Reality, Augmented Bottles Augmented reality is simply the idea of integrating digital information (and even digital interaction) right at the point where the user is already interacting with something in physical reality. While many augmented reality experiences started with clumsy-looking VR headsets and glasses, many simpler projects are taking root using just a smartphone and a QR code. Enter the augmented bottle. The

Q1 is a time for review in the wine industry. How did 2021 take shape? What do the trends mean for 2022? As various industry reports are being released, we thought it would be fun to take a look back on 2021 ourselves. Being a team of fulfillment specialists affords us a privileged point of view here. We can speak to wine sales and the DTC channel having seen it up close, on the ground. We see the actual orders going out the door to customers.  And what we see is this—the industry has gone through some substantial changes, no doubt about it. The “necessity is the mother of invention”’ principle is prevailing, which makes us  optimistic about what the rest of the year has in store.  Here are three trends to watch in 2022: Tasting Rooms Have Evolved, and Will Continue to Do So One of the biggest changes wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic was its effect on tasting rooms. We’re not talking about tasting rooms closing and re-opening; we’re ta